Decisions, decisions! Opinions needed!

[MickeysFavouriteGirl]

We're looking at March prices, they currently have the 2 nights free offer on and these are the prices we're getting:

Cheyenne/Santa Fe - £402, we love SF but fancy a change and maybe less of a walk to the parks!
Sequoia - £517 in the lodges, £670 golden forest, been a while since we stayed here
New York - £650 standard room, never stayed here.

We're a family of 4 with a toddler and an 8yr old, wanting to stay for 4 nights so maybe having a pool would be good. Price isn't really an issue - not sure if GF is worth £160 more, though the character breakfast and afternoon teas would be handy. I'm tempted to book SL and hope for a sale to upgrade to GF? Also does anyone have an idea how much Empire State level would be?

 

[HappyPanda]

I don't think I'd pay that much more for a Golden Forest room but the base price for SQL looks good!

 

[Lisa_C]

I don't think the GF rooms will ever be included in a sale?? I think the location and views are fab though and I'm going to stay there in the future

 

[sky13]

I've stayed in the Cheyenne and in a lodge in the Sequoia Lodge this year, and for that price difference I would definitely go for the lodge in the SQL over the Cheyenne. Mainly as the SQL is newly refurbished and looks fantastic, the rooms are bigger, and it's closer to the parks. I suspect the SF is nicer than the Cheyenne at the moment though as it's been recently refurbished...

Though I would then be tempted by HNY just to see what it's like!

 

[Julesdis]

Bear in mind the pool at HNY isn't the best for younger kids. It's a standard depth of about 5ft throughout, there is no shallower section and there isn't a proper kids pool.

I believe (never stayed there) that the SL pool has a slide and is better for children.

 

[HappyPanda]

Bear in mind the pool at HNY isn't the best for younger kids. It's a standard depth of about 5ft throughout, there is no shallower section and there isn't a proper kids pool.

I believe (never stayed there) that the SL pool has a slide and is better for children.

The SQL pool is also deep all round and wasn't a great experience for DD as she's not very confident in the water. I think it would be great for older kids or ones that aren't afraid of not being able touch the bottom!

 

[Ms Poppins]

For the difference in price, I'd chose HNY

Yes, the pool is deep all the way round, but there are plenty of floats/arm bands etc for the kids to use. I think all the pools on site are like this. There is also a very small spash pool, ankle deep, that your toddler could splash around in.

I could go on for ever about how much i like the HNY and won't bore you with the details....but for such a small difference in price, I'd go with HNY every time

 

[MickeysFavouriteGirl]

Ms Poppins - sell HNY to me, what are the perks?

 

[Ms Poppins]

LOL

Here we go.....

Location,it's closer to the parks than all other hotels with exception of DLH: Close enough to go for EMH at 8am and then stroll back to the hotel for breakfast around 10am. Handy to nip out to Disney Village for a snack, or back to the hotel to use the pool/play tennis.

Breakfast is served either in the Parkside Diner, or Manhattan restaurant. You'll be asked to choose breakfast slots, but you don't need to stick to these. We never have and just go for breakfast when we're ready. Best room for breakfast in my opinion is the Manhattan (just walk right past the door to the Parkside and keep going to the Manhattan). It's a large dining room with lovely set tables, comfy chairs and real tablecloths You get seated and don't need to scamble to find a table. If it's very busy they sometimes serve breakfast in the convention centre, which is ok too.
Hot items are included in breakfast as standard, bacon,sausage,scrambled egg, potato. Lots of continential choice too. We've never had to wait more than a minute or so to be seated.

Pool: great for summer, with outdoor section. Plenty of swimming aids for the kids, and towels are included

There is also a tennis court if you feel active

Rooms  nice and big with fantastic air con! Beds are big and comfy, and every room weve had has been pristine in condition. Mini bar if required, ice bucket (ice on all floors). Request kettle/iron from reception. Room service menu if youre too tired to go out. Bathroom has two sinks, hairdryer (which dries my very long and thick hair just fine) and toiletries replenished daily. Room clean/towels changed every morning. Very good housekeeping staff. Small safe in wardrobe big enough for passports/money etc.

You could have a lake view room (I believe now called Plaza) for extra charge. Or as we did last time, got a car-park view, which actually gave a view of the castle, if looking to the left. This was fantastic for watching the fireworks in Dreams!

Characters meet in the lobby each morning during breakfast. There is usually minimal wait here and they rotate every 30 minutes.

Dinner in the Parkside Diner is an all you can eat buffet and a great choice for a first night, to avoid queuing in the park if youre hungry.

Despite many opinions that its too grown up and not child orientated, I really dont see it like that! Its a lovely hotel inside, the gift shop is small but good and the staff are some of the nicest weve ever come across at Disney. The concierge has always been helpful, offering good advice.

If youre just looking for somewhere to lay your head, then I suppose you can stay anywhere. For us the hotel is all part of the holiday and its nice being somewhere nice

Ive put full reviews of our past trips on the hotel review thread, and you can also see my trip reports from my signature